JOBS& WORK

Topic ava2:
1. Working parents and child raising.
2. There are far too many civil servants in this country.
3. Is parity in governments such a good idea?
4. Equal opportunities for men and women.
5. Are immigrants a threat to the local work force? The future of unskilled
workers.
6. Strategies for job seeking.
7. Teleworking: a real alternative? Working to live vs living to
work.

1 Adjectives describing a job

1 My job is very challenging. It tests my abilities and keeps me motivated
I'm a cashier in a supermarket. I quite enjoy my job, but it can be a bit
monotonous / repetitive. I have to do exactly the same thing every day.
2

3 I'm a primary school teacher. I think working with young children is very
rewarding. It makes me happy because I think it's useful and important.
4 I work in a small graphic design company, and I find my job really
motivating. The kind of work I do and the people I work with make me want
to work harder / do better
Being a surgeon is very demanding. It's very high pressure, requires a lot
of skill and you have to work long hours.
5

6I

work in the Passport Office. My job is incredibly tedious. Everything takes

a long time and it's boring.

2 Nouns that are often confused

career / post / profession

1 My sister has applied for the post

of head of human resources at a
multinational company based in Berlin.
2 Nursing is a rewarding profession, but one which is not usually very highly
paid.

3 It's difficult for a woman to have a successful career and bring up young
children at the same time.

wages / salary / bonus / perks

4 The salary (informal The money) isn't fantastic about 20,000 a year but
the work is rewarding.
5 I'm a waiter and I get paid every Friday. The wages aren't very high but you
can earn a lot in tips if you do your job well.
6 The company made a huge profit this year and so all the staff were given
a bonus.
7 One of the perks (formal benefits) of this job is that I get free health
insurance.
-

staff /employer/ employee

8 The company has a of nearly 600employees
9 I wouldn't describe the factory owner as a very generous employer.
.

10 It's a great hotel and the staff

are very friendly.

skills/ training/ qualifications

11 All the managers were sent on a three-week training course.
12 He left school without any qualifictions
at all. He failed all his exams.
13 There are certain skills
you need to be a web designer, for example
you need to be able to use words effectively.

hours / timetable

A What hours
do you work? B It depends on the day but usually 8.30 to
6.00.
15 My husband is a university lecturer and he has a very easy timetable. He
only has eight classes a week.
14

3 Collocations
1 I'm a manager. I'm in charge of the sales department. I have to deal with
some very difficult clients. I'm also responsible for publicity. I'm off work at
the moment. I'm on maternity leave (sik leave, also).
2 I'm part of a team. I always work with other people. I have the opportunity
to travel, which is something I appreciate. I have good prospects in this job. I think
I can go far, I'm hoping to get promoted to head of department next year.
3 I'm hoping to get a rise. I think my salary is very low. It's a temporary job- I'm
only on a short-term contract, so I have no job security.
4 I was sacked/ fired from my last job. My boss didn't like the way I
worked. Now I'm self-employed. I run my own business and I'm much
happier. I only work part-time , from 10.00 to 2.00, and in the afternoon.
I'm doing an Open University course.
5 I was made redundant. There were too many workers and the company
was losing money. I've been out of work for three months now, but I hope
to find a job soon. I've been doing some voluntary work at the local

community centre, it's unpaid, but at least I'm getting some more work
experience.
Can you remember the words on this page? Test yourself or a partner. MultiROM
www.oup.com/elt/englishfile/advanced

Vocabulary & useful sentences

Project An idea, plan or scheme
Copyright The right to reproduce a work (music, art, literature, etc.)
Conglomerate A group of companies.
Campaign An organized plan of action to promote a product.
Personnel Members of staff, employees.
Brainstorm Group discussion to get new ideas.
Entrepreneurial A person who makes money by starting or running
businesses, especially when this involves taking financial risks.
Profit The money that you make in business or by selling things, especially
after paying the costs involved.
Oversee To watch somebody / something and make sure that a job or an
activity is done correctly.
Workload Amount of work a person has to do.
Blue Collar Connected with people who do physical work in industry.
White collar Working in an office, rather than in a factory, etc; connected
with work in offices.
Downside Disadvantage, negative aspect.
Proven track record in Demonstrated experience.
Headquarter Main office
Cold-calling Contacting without appointment.
PHRASAL VERBS
o If Joan is free, the receptionist will put you through (connect you).
o The receptionist will put you on hold and she will ask you to hold on / hang
on (wait) for a moment.
o You dont have time to wait so you say you will call back later.
o The receptionist is new a suddenly the line is dead. She cut you off (you
are not longer connected)
o You are very annoyed and you put the phone down (or you hang up). You
decide you will try and get through (make contact) later.
o But now you want to have a short nap so you take the phone off the hook
so that no one can phone you.
o Joan, come down to my office. I want to talk to you now.
o She was taken on as a trainee (new staff).
o Which project are you working on at the moment? Im involved in three
new projects at the moment, so my workload is really heavy.
o We carry out regular surveys in the Marketing department.
o Brenda reports to Lawrence.
o How old was he when he dropped out of college?
o beaver away to work hard for a long time
o How long have you been out of a job (= unemployed) ?
CONFUSING WORDS
Many employers / employees dont encourage their staff enough.
WORD BUILDING
o Im sick of working these long hours. Im handing in my resignation.
o Look at this! Its a gadget for making text messaging easier.

List of some important aspects of work to take into account in case you get
a job
Career prospects
Good working conditions
Friendly colleagues
Travel opportunities
Varied work
In-service training
Responsibility
Job security
Shifts (desplazamiento)
steady (= permanent) job.EFUL SENTENCES
At the end of the year, workers who had done a good job receive a bonus
in addition to their salary.
When a woman takes time off work to look after her new baby; the
company gives her maternity pay.
Part-time working is often the best way to improve your work-life balance.
IT specialists get good salaries because there is a serious shortage of
skilled workers.
The people shortage is now so acute that any expertise in the IT field will
lead to a job.
Although there may be a downside to living overseas, most people will
agree that it is a positive and
rewarding experience.
I like your ideas, but it seems to me that theres one fatal flaw we dont
have the money to invest.
She has been beavering away at that essay for hours.
After the first round of interviews, we now have a shortlist of five
candidates.
The first thing most office workers do in the morning is log on to check
their e-mails.
Time flies when youre on line and, before you know it, you have run up a
huge telephone bill!
To be successful these days, a company has to come up with truly
innovative ideas.
New appointments have to go to Lawrence for approval.
Alice will be responsible for making sure that the computing systems are
up and running. But
Randall has overall responsibility for the IT department.
In todays market, its very important to remain
flexible, so that you dont focus on just one thing.
COLLOCATIONS
Make: An inquiry, an offer, a complaint, an effort, a deal, a mistake, an
apology, a phone call, a business trip, a forecast.
Do: a job, the accounts, research, your duty, an experiment, well, damage,
some ork, someone a favour.
Take: into consideration, your time, a deal, advantage of.
Launch: an investigation, a campaign, a strategy.
Reach: opposition, an agreement, a target, a compromise.
Meet: a target, expectations, a deadline, an inquiry.
Have: a conversation, a forecast, a drink, a problem
Extra benefits are often offered as a form of life insurance, which helps a
spouse or family on the case of death of the wage earner.

 A common perk for senior managers is company car.

Company cars or health insurances can be part of the fringe benefits for a
job
Women who have a baby can get time off, called maternity leave
Also if an employee falls ill, they can receive sick pay until they can return
to work (while they are on sick leave).
Some job advertisements give the annual salary; some others give the
hourly, weekly or monthly.
The lowest legal amount of money, which can be paid to workers is called
the minimum wage.
Some companies offer stock options in addition to or instead of cash
bonuses.
They receive free or subsidized housing.
A demanding / fulfilling job
A stimulating work environment
A competitive salary
Work life balance
A nine-to-five job
A steady job
A well-paid job
A high-powered job
Vocational training
Career prospects
Promotion opportunities
My long-term goal is to
A good team player
Flexible working
Family commitments
Motivated workforce
Increased productivity
Reduced absenteeism
Improved recruitment and Retention

USEFUL VERBS AND PHRASES

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To
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develop professionally
gain work experience
show initiative
thrive on responsibility
be able to take charge
be stuck behind a desk
deal with people
work under pressure
meet deadlines
be highly motivated
be inspirational
be well qualified
work (ir)regular hours
be motivated by money
have job satisfaction
instil interest / confidence
bring a subject to life
put something across clearly
be knowledgeable about a subject

o To be an expert in their field

o To help people make connections
o To develop / create a good rapport
o To demonstrate empathy / fairness
o To be approachable
o To help someone reach their full potential
o To get the most out of someone
o To be charismatic
o To be firm but fair
o To make a valuable contribution.
o To be a good role model
o To have an impact on
o To look up to somebody
o To work tirelessly
o To inspire others
o To take responsibility
o To offer an essential service
o To work overtime
o To serve the public /nation
o To offer moral / spiritual guidance
o To be lost without someone
o To be stuck in a rut / groove aburrido
o To suffer from stress
o To be overworked
o To find a compromise llegar a un acuerdo
o To get the balance right
o To work flexitime
o To take unpaid leave coger una baja sin cobrar
o To take a career break
o To spend quality time
o To pursue interests outside of work
I like to delegate: Creo que es bueno delegar en los dems.
I feel totally out of my depth: (Esta situacin/problema) me
sobrepasa/supera.
I get very irate about all their time-wasting: Me cabrea un montn que
pierdan el tiempo.
to juggle the demands of work and family hacer malabarismos para
compatibilizar las
responsabilidades del trabajo con las del hogar
The city council is encouraging jobsharing sistema en el cual dos personas
comparten un puesto de trabajo

to make it easier for parents of young children to work.

He's very knowledgeable (= knows a lot) about German literature.
I'll draw up the contract and have it sent to you: Redactar el contrato y
hare que te lo enven.
Don't hassle me! I've got a lot on my plate at the moment: Deja de
fastidiarme! Djame en paz! Ya
tengo bastante con lo que tengo encima.
That was a bit insensitive, wasn't it? Fue una observacin / comentario,
hecho con muy poco
tacto, verdad?
There's no need to snap: No hay porque decir las cosas de manera tan
brusca.
He seems to think I'm Superwoman: Se piensa que soy una superwoman.

 I'm absolutely knackered by Friday: Para el viernes ya voy hecho polvo.

They're having a crackdown on stealing office stationery. Estn tomando
medidas enrgicas contra el robo de material de oficina.
I find manual work slightly demeaning: Creo que el trabajo manual es un
tanto servil.
Teaching is emotionally very demanding: La enseanza es agotadora
desde un punto de vista
emocional.
He's a very conscientious / thorough worker: Es un trabajador muy
concienzudo/ meticuloso.
I find the job immensely rewarding: Creo que el trabajo es altamente
gratificante.
I've got some very tough sales targets to meet: Debo alcanzar objetivos
muy altos en las ventas.
When's the deadline for this work: Cundo es la fecha tope / lmite para
entregar este trabajo?